Half my week is meetings and I have started treating lunch as the real meal of the day instead of a sad bowl at the desk.
So where is a weekday lunch still worth getting in the car for? Prix fixe, a proper lunch special, the midday version of happy hour. Under twenty five and quick enough that I am back for the two o'clock.
Loqui in Culver City, over at Platform. They make the flour tortillas in house and that is the entire difference, everything else is just meat on a warm napkin. Order at the counter, three tacos, lunch lands around fifteen bucks and I am out in ten minutes. No ceremony, no waiting on a check, back at my desk before anyone notices I left.
Downtown has options if you know where to look. Sonoratown on 8th does a flour tortilla taco that ruins other tacos for you and lunch there runs under twelve dollars, in and out in twenty minutes.
If you want to actually sit down, Nickel Diner on Main is still my spot. The maple bacon donut gets all the attention but the plates are the real thing, sooo good!!
I work remote so my commute to lunch is basically nothing, but Hae Jang Chon does a weekday Korean barbecue lunch set and they cook it for you. It is the one thing that gets me out of the apartment before three. Go early, the lot fills.
The lunch version of this is genuinely underrated and nobody plans for it, which is exactly why it works.
Republique on La Brea runs counter service through the middle of the day and it is the best twenty dollars you will spend on a Tuesday. You order at the counter, you seat yourself, and you are never stuck waiting on a table or a check, which is the part that usually kills a workday lunch. The sandwiches are the reason to go and the pastry case is the reason you end up carrying something back to the office for later.
Go before half past twelve. After that the line runs toward the door and the whole time advantage disappears. From WeHo I give myself an hour door to door and I have never once been late getting back.
Sushi Gen in Little Tokyo, the sashimi lunch. It is the one time of day the math actually works, the same fish costs noticeably less than it does at dinner and it comes with miso and rice. Get there before noon or you are standing in the Honda Plaza lot watching people who planned their day better than you. I have lost that one twice now.
Out this way Din Tai Fung in Glendale is the weekday move, you get seated fast before dinner exists. Raffi's Place if I want koobideh instead. Both easy off the 134 and both worth the drive from Pasadena. I eat anything, so I rotate.
Pampas in Culver City. Lines can get long at lunch and dinner (no worries, they are moving), but it's worth it. You pay by weight. I always order the chicken stroganoff. Their smashed potatoes are great, too.
Pampas is amazing.
I can also recommend Civilize Thai Bistro. They open around 11 AM and have really good Thai food. I love their orange chicken and Thai curry. Great portions, enough to share and take home some leftovers. Fast and friendly service.
My favorite lunch place is Park’s Finest. They have real lunch specials like the $10 Local Love Lunch Bowl or a Worker Wednesday special.
One secret is to look for hospital cafeterias. They have decent-priced, fresh food. They're quick, and most are open to the public. One example is the UCLA Santa Monica Medical Center Cafeteria. It's a different vibe from most other lunch places.
That's actually a genius move I never even considered. 
Neither did I. 
I didn't even know that they were open to the public, but it makes sense, as there are a lot of visitors. I am sure they have some healthy lunch options.
